The NBA has tried to make Martin Luther King Day it’s sporting day — and it’s a good fit (well as good as any sporting attempt to claim the day). The NBA has become a league about inclusion on a lot of levels: If you can ball well enough it doesn’t matter if you are from Brooklyn or Houston or Germany or the Congo. It doesn’t matter what color your skin is. The NBA is going to welcome you. We as a nation have not yet reached Dr. King’s dream, but we’ve made strides. The NBA can be a symbol of that.

The NBA has a big slate of 11 games Monday, with some interesting matchups to watch.

Chicago vs. Memphis (1 p.m. ET): Memphis has won a couple in a row and may have started to find their stride without the injured Zach Randolph, but that will be tested by the hottest team in the NBA right now in Derrick Rose and the Bulls.

Orlando at New York (1 p.m. ET): Could be a marquee NBA showdown on Broadway, but the role of Carmelo Anthony may be played by Bill Walker. ‘Melo is a game-time decision due to a sprained ankle.

Cleveland at Charlotte (2 p.m. ET): Kyrie Irving vs. Kemba Walker. Two rookie point guards showing they might be able to lead teams for a while in this league.

Houston at Washington (2 p.m. ET): Another point guard showdown — Kyle Lowry vs. John Wall. Wall should get the best of the matchup, the problem is after that all the matchups and team play favor Houston.

Portland at New Orleans (3 p.m. ET): Portland is a fun team to watch play, and I still say LaMarcus Aldridge is the best power forward in the game right now.

New Jersey at Los Angeles Clippers (3:30 p.m. ET): Chris Paul is a game-time decision for the Clippers with a pulled hamstring. Not that it should matter against New Jersey.

Toronto at Atlanta (4 p.m. ET): Atlanta has Josh Smith, Jeff Teague and rookie Ivan Johnson (getting some run with Al Horford out) that make them interesting to watch. Toronto is hurting with Andrea Bargnani out, he had been playing the best ball of his NBA career before getting injured.

Sacramento at Minnesota (8 p.m. ET): What will Ricky Rubio do to the porous Kings defense?

Dallas at Los Angeles Lakers (10:30 ET): Two of the teams in that second tier in the west behind OKC trying to get back to their old level of play despite a lot of new pieces to fit in (or new system in the Lakers case). If the Lakers win this one it does not make up for the sweep in the playoffs last year… but it would still feel pretty good to Lakers fans.

The Pelicans are disappointing this season — it is Anthony Davis vs. the world down there. Which is the main reason they are 7-16 this season. While things have gotten better since Jrue Holiday‘s return, Davis is averaging a league-best 31.4 points per game, it then drops off to Holiday at 15.4, and then E'Twaun Moore at 11.1.

When a team struggles, usually that is a bad sign for the coach. Not because it’s always their fault, but because GMs choose not to fire themselves for poor roster construction. Which leads to the question: Alvin Gentry, are you concerned about your job? (Warning, NSFW)

New Orleans’ struggles are not on Gentry, certainly not completely. He’d like a roster that can play uptempo, that has depth. What he got instead was a good point guard, an elite 4/5, a rookie in Buddy Hield that maybe pans out down the line, and then… nada. And the roster Gentry has often is banged up.

If anyone is in trouble, it is GM Dell Demps. Remember, Danny Ferry was hired last summer for the vague role of “special advisor.” Gentry is in his second year, and the issue is the roster he was given. But the Pelicans are a patient organization that values continuity, so… who knows. But the clock is ticking on Davis;, it’s years away, but the Pelicans need to build a team around him and are far from that right now.

Jones told the Beacon Journal he will retire after next season, which will be his 15th in the NBA. His ultimate dream is to ride off after three consecutive championships in Cleveland

“I know playing 15 years is a number where I can look back and I can be like, ‘I accomplished something,’ ” Jones said. “Fourteen vs. 15 may not be much, but to be able to say I played 15 years, that’s enough for me to hang ’em up.”

Jones’ contract expires after the season, so the Cavs will have a say in whether he returns. Safe to say if LeBron wants him back, Jones will be back.

But the Heat got into trouble relying on washed-up veterans around LeBron, wasting valuable roster spots on players who could no longer contribute.

Is that Jones? Not yet. Though he’s out of the rotation, he has still made 11-of-12 open 3-pointers this season. There’s a role for him as spot-up shooter when Cleveland needs one.

Still, the Cavaliers ought to be mindful of Jones’ likely decline over the next year and a half. Plus, it’s not a certainty he holds to his timeline. Cavs veterans have a history of changing their mindon retirement.

Phil Jackson wants us to know Carmelo Anthony can hold on to the ball too long and stall out the offense.

Shocking. Such a revelation. It’s not like he knew that when he gave Anthony a five-year contract extension… oh, wait, everybody did know that already.

Which leads to my criticism of Jackson in this PBT Extra. Taking a shot at a player as a coach who sees said player every day comes off differently than the same thing from the ivory tower criticism of a GM. Plus, Jackson’s timing made no sense.

The New York Knicks were on a four-game winning streak, they have looked like a potential playoff team in the East, team chemistry has been pretty good, and there seemed to be more sun shining on Madison Square Garden then we have seen in a few years.

“At the end of the day we’re playing good basketball,” Anthony said. “That’s the only thing that matters at this point. So any negativity that’s coming towards me or towards the team, I don’t think we need it at this point…

“I feel like we’re playing good basketball, and just to have a temporary black cloud over our heads,” he said. “I don’t know when the comments were made or the gist of them, I just know something was said.”

Anthony is spot on here. Jackson isn’t wrong that Anthony can hold the ball too long, but Jackson knew that when he gave Anthony a five-year contract extension. Also, the Sports VU camera data shows Anthony is holding the ball less and dribbling a little less than previous seasons.

But the real question: What did Jackson think he would accomplish with this? He’s too smart, too calculated — he doesn’t just say things to the press without a motive. But with everything going about as well as one could hope with the Knicks, and with Anthony not at a point in his career he’s going to change his game, what’s the point?